Kanegon

I recently picked up a couple of lots of 3 vinyls each and in one of them was this 9" Kanegon (カネゴン,) from Yamanaya. I already had a Kanegon from Bandai and a miniature glowie of the Bullmark sculpt, but this was my first vintage style standard size Kanegon.

It's an ok sculpt, neither great nor terrible. And the color scheme is similarly average. The vinyl is thick and solid, but otherwise, it's just another kaiju to blend into the crowd. Nothing too special.

But just before I went to put him away I noticed something that I hadn't before in any pictures. Kanegon has 5 very obvious points of articulation (hips, shoulders and neck) but can you tell where the 6th is?

One of the small "rings" on the top of it's head can actually rotate, allowing you to turn the eyes in whatever direction you choose! It's a small detail, but one that I found to be pretty cool.

One thing that I just now noticed well typing (and long after I've taken the pictures) is that underneath it's chin is a bunch of small indentations that are not on the rest of the neck. So I think these are probably meant to represent where the actor was likely breathing through the suit! Not a big deal by any means, but a neat little attention to detail.

According to Club Tokyo, this Kanegon was the 13th figure in this line by Yamanaya. It shares the same header card as others in the line.

This is a decent figure and if you like Kanegon, I don't think you'd be disappointed in it.

Kanegon is one of those monsters, in my opinion, that's got a very tricky form to render in 3D as a toy. Like, there's the whole spectrum for kaiju toys, right? You have super-realistic sculpts on one end...then you have the cute and/or deformed or simplified old-school Bullmark/Popy/Marusan look. Some monsters' forms just look more "right" on one side of the spectrum or the other.

Like, Gamera looks WAY better on the old-school end of the spectrum, while Daimajin is much more appropriate on the realistic end. Of course, there are others like Godzilla and Hedorah that look fantastic anywhere on that spectrum! [All my opinion, naturally!]

Kanegon, I think, belongs closer to the realistic side than the old school side. I have the Popy/B-Club reissue of the Bullmark/Marusan, and I gotta tell ya, I'm not all that excited by the sculpt. It's too old-school. I think the Yamanaya sculpt is the perfect blend of realistic detail and old-school proportions.

Wow, I couldn't disagree more. I think Kanegon is a silly looking kaiju "in real life" so for me, a less realistic sculpt is better. Something like King Ghidorah, on the other hand, who is bad-ass "IRL", benefits from a more realistic sculpt. I guess when I am not a huge fan of the original suit, I'm more likely to want to see it changed in toy form!

"This must be settled the way nature intended....with a vicious, bloody fight!"
Onyx Blackman
Principal, Flatpoint High